Baby Steps
by Awkwardly Intrepid
Summary: Years had gone by since Sasuke first left the land of fire, and Sakura struggles as she tries to come to terms with the fact that, while he had returned to Konohagakure, Sasuke was now a far cry from the boy she had cried over all of those years ago.


Coral hair hung from her face as she leaned over a sink, trying to regain her composure. Her shoulders gently quivered as she exhaled, the sound of the running water drowning out any sounds that tried to pass her paled lips.

She forced the air out of her lungs, expelling her breath until her chest was void of oxygen and her body calmed of its tremors.

It had been three weeks since he had come back, and after twenty one days of ceaseless interrogation and having his mind combed through at the hands of Inoichi Yamanaka, Sasuke Uchiha had been deemed harmless to Konohagakure.

Things were far from settled though. Even after no findings of malicious intent within the Uchiha, the council elders had insisted his every move be followed. And while she found it hard to believe that Naruto had left him alone since his release, Sakura had no doubt there were more than one anbu member stationed outside of her apartment at the moment.

The situation seemed to only get more desperate; the mass majority of the villagers held Sasuke in malcontent, and the tensions between Konoha and the other nations were becoming strained. Demands of recompense for the Uchiha's actions filtered in everyday, yet Naruto remained ever cheerful, insisting team seven reunite over a meal. Figuring it might be pushing it to take him out in public, Sakura had offered to serve lunch in her small apartment.

And here she was, ten minutes into the meal, caving in emotionally over her washroom sink, the rest of her old team just in the other room.

She berated herself. Was this not what she had wanted? What she had spent nights crying over as a girl?

Still, the boy she had shed tears over was a far cry from the man who resided within her living room. She had only encountered him a few times since his departure, and while he had acted maliciously towards her, she had convinced herself his mind was being manipulated by Orochimaru or the Akatsuki, warping his mind into a temporary state. She had deluded herself into believing that the Sasuke she knew was still alive within his being somewhere.

But now he was back, vastly different, and with no one to blame for his mental state, she felt tears sting her eyes as she came to terms with the fact that the boy of her childhood probably no longer existed.

She had to pull herself together. Even if the hokage trusted Sasuke, the elders would be hard to win over, more willing to hand Sasuke over to the other nations in an act of peacekeeping than let him pick at the remnants of his life within the village.  
Biting her lip, she sucked in a breath through her teeth. If one of the forerunners for his return couldn't even handle being near him, it wouldn't do much to help Sasuke's case.

Forcing herself to stare at the girl on the other side of the mirror, she smoothed wayward coral strands back into place. Setting her face into a kind expression, she walked back into the main room of her apartment, the remainder of team seven seated around a table of food.

Naruto looked over to her as she came out, a concerned look on his features, and Kakashi peered at her over the pages of his book.

_Is it that obvious? _

Her eyes flickered to Sasuke in hopes of measuring the Uchiha's reaction to her brief absence, but he wasn't even looking her way- choosing instead to stare out the window, a detached look on the man's face.

Turning her attention back to the others, she smiled before moving to take a seat at the small chabudai.

He turned his head as Sakura moved across the room, his eyes automatically drawn to the only discernible movement in the room. She placed herself next to Kakashi at the small chabudai, in the position that put her the farthest away from him, a small detail that failed to escape his notice.

He had seen her a handful of times when she had tried to drag him back to Konoha, but this was the first time he had really looked at her in depth. She was older now- taller, her expressions more subdued, nearly a woman. A hint of distaste colored his thoughts as he wondered absentmindedly if she had matured mentally as well. As she had yet to throw herself at him, he supposed she had.

He watched as she reached across the table to grab an onigiri that she had prepared earlier, tomatoes and okaka sitting within the salted rice. But her hand faltered, knocking over a cup of tea.

Naruto jumped up and yelled some sort of obscenity as the hot liquid hit him, and the Uchiha's eyebrow twitched, irritated by his sudden outburst.

She looked down at her lap embarrassed, pink flushing her cheeks, and mumbled a quick apology before getting up to fetch a dish towel from the kitchen.

Sighing, he moved to follow her, looking for something to spice his food. As he moved to get up, out of nowhere Kakashi's hand was on his bicep, his grip strong and unfaltering. The Uchiha's gaze darkened as he glared at his former sensei.

Was he worried about Sakura? If he had wanted to hurt the girl, he would have already.

He moved out of the man's grip and walked to the kitchen. She was there, reaching for a dish towel that hung on the handle of the oven. But she fumbled again, knocking it to the ground before her hand could find purchase.

_Tch. Clumsy. _He was reminded of times in which he had to save her. Always pulling her out of harm's way._ So useless_.

Moving quickly, he picked up the cloth before she had even began to make an effort to. He moved back up to hand her the towel.

She looked surprised to see him there. And while Kakashi and Naruto were less than a dozen feet away, he realized it was the first time he had addressed her one on one since he had returned.

She stared at him blankly for a moment before composing herself and smiling. A small thank you leaving her lips as her arm stretched in her effort to retrieve the towel from him.

As her hand moved towards his, he noticed a slight tremor in his peripheral vision. Her hand was shaking.

_She's scared._

His gaze softened a bit at the realization. Sakura was nervous in his presence, slight shakes racking her limbs. He supposed it made sense- he had tried to kill her on more than one occasion in the past year. But wasn't she the one who had _wanted_ him back?

He was at a loss of what to do. Comforting was not his strong suit, and after a few seconds he sighed, exasperated. He shoved the towel before turning quickly, grabbing the salt container on his way out.

Her head fell slightly

As he walked back towards the table, he stalled, pausing in the kitchen's entryway.

"Sakura."

Her head snapped up.

His back was to her. He looked at the ground, uncomfortable as he bit out the words.

"I'm sorry."

She froze and watched him continue to make his way back to the others before once again regaining her composure and joining the group, a little calmer than before.

Back in the main room, Kakashi's visible eye crinkled at the outer edges, surely smirking underneath his mask.

It wasn't much, but it was progress.

* * *

**A couple of notes: A chabudai is a short legged table used in traditional Japanese homes. It differs from a kotatsu in the sense that it doesn't have blankets on the edges or a heating mechanism on the underside.**

**Also, a few of you may have noticed, but the food Sakura reaches for (omusubi [onigiri] with okaka and tomatoes) is Sasuke's favorite food. She had made it especially before hand with him in mind. **

**Katsuobushi, or okaka, is the japanese word for dried, fermented, and smoked skipjack tuna. A main ingredient in dashi, it is also traditionally used as filling in onigiri.**

**Thank you so much for reading! **


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